


Death and Destruction (Infinity War – Do It All Again)

by navaan



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Trailer, First Kiss, Fix-It, Hurt/Comfort, Infinity Gems, M/M, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-02
Updated: 2018-03-02
Packaged: 2019-03-23 13:22:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13788621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/navaan/pseuds/navaan
Summary: Tony is the one who throws himself all in. It’s clear that Thanos sees him as one of the main threats and wants to break Iron Man for all of them to see.Steve is already down on his knees, blood trickles from his mouth and he feels like he won’t be able to stand ever again.





	Death and Destruction (Infinity War – Do It All Again)

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the cap-ironman Alphabet Challenge 2018 for the concepts of D – Death, Destruction and the [Bingo card prompt “Infinity Gems”](https://navaan.dreamwidth.org/592212.html#cutid1)

Tony's the one who throws himself all in from the moment the fight breaks loose and Thanos targets him more than any of the others. It’s clear that he sees Tony as one of the main threats on this battlefield and wants to break Iron Man for all of them to see. A message. A warning. A devastating blow.

Steve is already down on his knees; blood trickles from his mouth and he feels like he won’t be able to stand ever again.

But he has to.

This fight isn't over yet.

And he has to help.

Get to Tony. 

He looks up in time to see Thanos holding up Iron Man light a weightless raggdoll and then break him over one knee – like he's a twig, not a man in a perfectly designed suit of high-tech armor. The noise of the metal and joints whining and screeching is sickening and Steve - ears ringing with white noise and barely able to see - shouts out Tony's name, imagines he can hear the bones cracking with the metal. “Tony! Tony!!”

Iron Man doesn't make a sound, doesn't pull away when more blows rain down on him and crush him into the dirt. The alien giant laughs, cruel and secure in his victory. He doesn't spare Steve one glance, but leers down at Iron Man as if this defeat brings him personal satisfaction.

 _Tony can take it,_ Steve chants in his mind. _The suit can take it._

Then he tries to get to his feet, tries to take his shield, get up, get to Tony. 

While Thanos flings Iron Man away like a piece of garbage, he’s left to gather himself up. Thor attacks, draws Thanos away from both Tony and Steve. With effort, Steve tries to make the best of it and pull himself into a sitting position. He's dizzy. His stomach is rolling and he spits blood this time, but Iron Man is feet away and not moving.

He needs to get to him.

Because Tony isn't moving.

Tony isn't moving.

Iron armor lying there like a broken doll.

It’s a terrible darker mirror to their first fight together – and their last against each other.

_And we haven’t even properly spoken in months... He can't be dead. There's so much I still need to say to him._

He heaves a sigh, groans, stumbles, scurries over more on his knees than on his feet, shield dragging at his side. He falls. He’s still not close enough. “Tony,” he says and it’s barely audible with the noise of the battle still raging around them. “Tony, please. You now you’re not the type to make the sacrifice play.” It’s a bad, bad joke, but Steve thinks he won’t be able to live with it if Tony dies here and they never resolve their differences.

 _I never told you,_ he thinks and drags himself over.

He comes closer, puts his hand on the armor. The fight is moving away from them, but he knows it can't be long till Thanos remembers them. And Tony isn't moving, still not moving, eerily still. The armor is shot. Steve sees the damage up close and even he knows this isn't good. 

It’s all lost. All lost.

If Tony's dead then it's over.

They’re losing.

Without Tony they're losing.

They're already losing...

“Tony,” he says and pushes weakly at the breastplate, “we need you.” His voice breaks a little.

The Iron Man mask snaps up, but the body inside is still not moving towards him, arms remaining still and immobile on both sides of the torso. Tony’s face is splattered with blood and he’s wheezing terribly. His eyes are unfocused, staring up at nothing. “Steve,” he whispers and Steve has to read it from the lips more than he can hear it.

“I’m sorry, Tony,” he splutters out, “Don't move, don't... I'm so sorry.” _For not telling you about your parents and Bucky; for not asking for help; for thinking I was protecting you when I just didn’t want you to hate me for holding on to my friend; for not telling you how I feel; for not being there for you sooner._

Tony stares at him, eyes watery. He moves his lips but nothing comes out. He tries harder, moves his arm and Steve realizes just how broken the armor is, how broken the body inside must be. He wants to break down, but he can't; he needs to be strong for Tony now. It's the least he can do. Then Tony’s eyes are trained on his and he’s holding his gaze. Steve knows his own eyes and cheeks are wet. But Tony smiles, bright and with a flame that's burning out.

The open affection there hurts as much as it worries him.

“Sorry,” Tony says back to him in a broken wheeze. “Sorry, Steve. Should've... Never mind... I... I knew to trust you. Your… your turn. Trust you to...” It's terrible to listen to him, fragments of thoughts and words and sentences that come like a desperate dying breath.

Struggling, Tony raises his hand - armored in red and gold that vanishes under dirt and grime – his fist only half open. But as he does his eyes go dull and without remembering he ever moved Steve is holding onto the gauntlet. He screams Tony's name, but his Tony's eyes have lost all life and his face, always expressive in laughter, sadness and in anger, freezes into a pale lifeless mask.

Steve screams. 

There are no words. Even Tony's name gets lost in his pain.

He has lost everything again – lost Tony, lost the chance at reconciliation, at working something out – together or for himself. Tears are running down his face freely and he grasps his shield, ready to throw whatever he has left at the monster who killed Tony. 

Behind him Thor goes down.

That's it.

It's Steve or nothing as Thanos turns to him and there is anger on the titan's face. 

With a savage grin Thor pulls himself up and Strange appears. Thanos screams in rage and holds up the gauntlets, screams something, but Steve can hear it only as if from a great distance.

Suddenly warmth engulfs him and it's like Tony's voice whispers at him again, _Your turn. Trust you_ , and Steve realizes that he never let go of Iron Man's gauntleted fingers.

Something warm passes into his hand – from Iron Man's fingers to his.

He looks down.

One of the gems.

An infinity stone.

He looks up as Thanos starts running towards him. He wants the gem. He lost a gem. Tony must have...

Steve's eyes snap back to Tony's lifeless face as he feels the pull of the other stones and their might, but he's no longer really here, sees Tony's body wink out of existence, feels the world fall away, feels himself shift and go. And suddenly he's standing with his own two feet on the ground and his shield is on his arms and he's standing in an open room with a big sofa and he thinks he has seen this before, but it looked different – and then he turns around and is looking straight out at the lawn of the New Avengers compound. He knows the building has changed drastically since he was last there and these are living quarters. It's not the common room, although he has no idea what that looks like now. 

Everything is clean and bright and new and... calm.

It makes no sense.

His cheeks are still wet and his body aches. The gem's in his hand. Just a moment ago...

“What the fuck are _doing_ here? You've got nerves...!”

Tony.

He whirls around, aware that he can barely hold himself on his feet, aware that he must look like a harbinger of the apocalypse – and that is just what he is, isn't he?

But it doesn't matter.

There's Tony, wearing pants of a tailored gray business suit but no jacket, and a vest over a white shirt. His sleeves are pushed up haphazardly and there are black stains on the shirt; his hair is in a disarray.

Workshop or garage, Steve realizes. Tony has gotten his hands dirty while working.

He's alive.

Alive.

His shield clatters from his hands and to the ground and Tony's eyes follow it. A frown is marring his forehead as he wonders why Steve has it, why it isn't wherever it was put after their last fight in Siberia.

He doesn't stumble, but closes the distance between them with long strides, feels a pang of regret when Tony's warm brown - _living_ \- eyes widen in shock and he makes a step back, wincing and turning away like he expects Steve to attack him, or at least a fist connecting with his cheek.

The memory of Tony's dead body is so fresh in Steve's mind that the regret and pain mingle with the singing of his heart. _He's alive. He's alive._. His arms encircle Tony in an a desperate embrace and he crushes him against his own chest, tugs him close and holds on. He's still crying; regret and joy are so overwhelming that he can't keep it in, all emotions threatening to break free.

This is a miracle, an impossibility.

“What the fuck?” An undignified squeak escapes Tony and his eyes go wide like saucers. Up close he must see and smell and feel what the fight has done to Steve, must realize that more's going on than he knows. (Steve can already _hear _his mind at work.) He tries to free himself, but Steve barely lets him move. Steve can't let him go yet. “Cap? What...?”__

__He can't feel Tony's heartbeat through the sturdy fabric of the uniform, but his warmth and movements, his breath so close to Steve's face._ _

__Tony is alive._ _

__He saw him die._ _

__And now he's alive._ _

__The gem still rests in Steve's tightly closed fist, and he holds on to it, just as tightly as he's holding Tony. He doesn't want this all to vanish and find himself back on the battlefield with a corpse beside him._ _

__“What _happened_ and what're you...? You can't _be_ here, Cap!”_ _

__Steve kisses him – crushes Tony's lips in a harsh and desperate kiss and Tony makes a surprised sound that gets swallowed as Steve forces his mouth open to get a taste. He needs to feel him; there's no time for hesitation, no justification for it. He missed his chance before._ _

__He lost Tony._ _

__And now he has him._ _

__Here._ _

__It takes a moment, before Tony nearly _melts_ into Steve's embrace and kisses back._ _

__Steve's the one who pulls away first, but doesn't loosen the embrace, instead hides his face against Tony's neck, feeling his pulse. He's silently crying against Tony's shoulder, because this is too overwhelming._ _

__“That was...” Tony starts._ _

__And Steve whispers: “A long time coming.”_ _

__The embrace must be uncomfortable, but Tony's arms wrap around his back and he doesn't struggle any more._ _

__“What the hell happened to you?” he asks, puzzlement clear in his voice._ _

__By now he's holding Steve up more than hugging him and Steve laughs, brokenly and full of amazement. “You bastard,” he says through his tears because finally the magnitude of all of this hits him and he understands what has happened. There's an infinity stone in his hand._ _

__And Tony stole it right off of Thanos' hand that struck the killing blow to send him here._ _

__Back._ _

__Giving Steve another chance to set things right; giving both of them a chance to solve this _together_._ _

__“I gave you a phone. You could have called,” he mutters and knows that none of this makes sense to Tony._ _

__“Ehm,” Tony mumbles and tries to wind out of his embrace. “I _should_ have called. Look at you. I've missed about 20 steps in this conversation or you've forgotten how to have one...”_ _

__Steve kisses him again, bites his lip, leans their foreheads together._ _

__“I'm in Wakanda right now. _And_ here. And you're here.”_ _

__Tony makes a surprised sound when Steve finally pulls away and shows him what's in his palm._ _

__“Let's make the best of it,” Steve says, watches Tony's eyes widen as he inspects the infinity stone, mind racing, curious as ever, alive._ _

__He'll forever know now what it looks like when the life bleeds out of these eyes and leaves Tony's face a terrible frozen mask._ _

__Steve can't let it happen again._ _

__He won't._ _

__Tony trusted him to set this right._ _

__And he will._ _

__Together with Tony._ _

__While this Tony here looks up, guarded and not sure what to do with him, this gem and the blood Steve's dragged into his living room – Steve knows that he's never again going to betray this trust. And he won't let Tony push him away either. They've both been stubborn idiots for far too long._ _

__“Okay,” Tony says with a frown. “Tell me what's going on. Right now.”_ _

__Steve smiles, lets Tony drag him to the sofa, sits._ _

__And then he talks._ _

__There are no more secrets to keep._ _

__They'll do this together from the start this time._ _

**Author's Note:**

> You can follow me for fic updates on [tumblr](https://navaanwrites.tumblr.com/) and [twitter](https://twitter.com/navaanwrites). This fic has a post on the tumblr [here](https://navaanwrites.tumblr.com/post/171502714032/death-and-destruction-infinity-war-do-it-all) in case you want to share it. It also has a page on my [)Dreamwidth](https://navaan.dreamwidth.org/595027.html)


End file.
